When people have asked me about my favorite place in the world
I usually, bougie-ly, would talk about another park downtown,
but upon further review, you see, with hindsight being 20/20
I feel pretty steady to say that I want my cremated remains – whenever this life is done –
to join the ‘Forever Wild’ woods I would walk through with my day-ones.
Familia and neighbors alike, we would high’k up and down the pathways
that were laid out beyond that first playground; down the long stairs
and up the dirt trails, we found a beautiful green oasis that no place else compares.
Nature with roots going back pre-colonial had welcomed me and the boys
with the freshest air I’ve ever inhaled; the birds and bugs drowned out the city’s noise
and nothing else mattered but the experience we shared.
So when (hopefully) I’m older than the average Danish cookie tin
(The one with your abuela’s sewing kit hidden inside) and my soul leaves this body of mine,
I’ll want my ashes spread in The Bronx – more specifically, amidst the trees in Seton Falls Park. – RSM
